Rain, rain go away, come again another day

Wait a minute. I live in Southern California. It isn't supposed to RAIN here is it? Sheesh. It WAS sunny this morning when I woke up and had my breakfast cottage cheese. THEN, it started raining. What a bummer! Oh well.

I had a BIG chemo yesterday that scared mommy. I was fine with it but you know how worried moms can get. In fact, I feel GOOD! :) The scary stuff was called Doxyrubicin. So far, I am doing great. If mom would just let me rest I'd probably do better (hehehe—she keeps asking me, "Are you okay?" and then gets that thermometer out to check my temperature—she's beginning to drive me crazy!!!). Oh well, I know she means well.

Tonight I get to go out to dinner with the 'rents. I am excited! Now if only the rain would stop so I can go for a walk…

Feel so good—

I had a bit of a roller-coaster weekend…my tummy was weird and well, I don't want to talk about some stuff here but mommy took me to see the doctor on Sunday and I had to get a shot. Not what I liked but I tell you, I feel 100 times better today. I also got some yucky tasting medicine and I wasn't allowed to eat ANYTHING yesterday which was HORRIBLE. I made up for it today, I tell you! I had yummy yogurt for breakfast, red kidney beans for snack, cottage cheese for snack, and a fabulous dinner of chicken with veggies. Mmmmmm. Oh, I also got more snack—freeze-dried Salmon—my favourite! Fasting for one day made me a starving piggy. Daddy took me for a walk around the block. I didn't see my friend, Congo, which made me sad—he must have been in the house because the door was open (Congo likes to sleep outside during the day). Maybe tomorrow…

Good report from the Doctor

Okay, I just HAVE to tell y'all that I got a good report from my doctor today! Yep, Dr. N said I am doing well! Mommy was all concerned because she thought my tummy was distended (or something like that). Dr. N said nope that I was fine. I had to go and get that CBC test thing (I am getting pretty good about all that poking). I have gained a little weight which is good—I am not sooooo skinny anymore. I am now a lean, mean, cancer-fighting machine weight of 12.6 pounds. :)

After the doctor appointment I went with mommy to a meeting at her school. I got sooooo hot (the air conditioner wasn't working) so mommy let me stay in her cool classroom. It was MUCH better there. I got to stay with Henry the Leopard Gecko, Sally the Salamander, the Anole Lizards, the Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches, the Walking Stick Bugs, and all the other 'pets' mommy has. The crickets were all chirping away (they are the 'food' for some of the carnivores) so it was a peaceful environment for me. I always like to visit mommy's classroom. (Henry and some of the others were at our house for the holidays—I think they were happy to see me again!)

Hmph—a little grumpy but not too bad

Hmph…mommy had to go back to work today. I was NOT happy. That's right. I was NOT happy. Well, let's just say I was a bit on the grumpy side. Yesterday, I had to go and get fluids cuz I wasn't drinking as much water as mom wanted me to (I was pouting cuz I knew she had to go to school today). But, healthwise the doctor said I was doing GREAT! This made mommy happy (she's such a worrier). She had to leave for work today after being off for two weeks so daddy took pity on me so he took me for a drive along the coast with him and grandma (grandma is visiting from Catalina—she has Alzheimer's now and going for the drive was really good for her). The drive with grandma and daddy was lots of fun—it was a beautiful day—no rain like yesterday (which was horrible! Those poor kids in the Rose Parade were soaked and I bet they all got sick from walking 5 1/2 miles in the windy rain…) and the sun was out and everything. I did give mommy lots and lots of kisses when she got home—I kept waiting and waiting for her (daddy called her on the cell phone and told her I was waiting which made her drive faster, I am sure). :)

New Year's Eve 2005

Ahhh, the end of the year. Yesterday I had chemo with Cytoxan which freaks out my mommy—she forces me to drink (which I don't always do) and pee (which I do, do) because the chemical is not good for the ol' bladder. Sheesh. Today it started raining which is NOT something I like (I don't like my feet getting wet—are there ANY divas out there who do? I don't think so!). So, I have been just hanging around—tonight there are supposed to be those nasty noises late at night but MAYBE the rain will keep people from making too much noise. :) I hope everyone has a happy end to 2005 and welcome in 2006 with a smile!

It was a busy, busy day for me!

Today was a busy day. After my breakfast of mmmmm-good yogurt with Salmon oil (yeah, sounds gross, huh but my hair looks and feels silky again—won't let that nasty ol' chemo mess with MY hair!) mom and I went to her school. She worked in the butterfly garden for awhile and I slept in the backseat of her car. Then, we went to her classroom where she worked doing stuff—I played for awhile then took a nap. Mom decided she was hungry so we got a snack and I got to eat a hamburger patty, woo-hoo! Oh, and a tomato slice, too…and then I got to go for a walk at one of my favourite parks in Costa Mesa. Ahhh…the outdoors. Of course, I should've known that today was…you guessed it…CBC day so I had to get poked with the needle. Bleah. But, Jamie is so sweet and it didn't even hurt. After my dinner I went to visit Amber, this great big Golden Retriever at my auntie's house. Mom and dad were having dinner with auntie and the relatives (even grandma from Catalina was there!). I did get busted because (oops!) I couldn't resist and I did a 'tinkle' on auntie's little rug by the dining room table and mommy caught me—I just couldn't resist!!! (Mom grabbed me and ran me out the front door! Sheesh, it was just a little tinkle!) Anyway, auntie said not to worry that it was probably cuz Amber did a tinkle there or something… :P Mom was aghast anyway since I never do that in someone's house…Oh well…it was a nice evening anyway. :)

Chemo must be working…

Hmmmm…that chemo stuff must be working deep inside of me. Mommy was commenting on it and I think she's right. I have never felt better! I was bouncing around and I swear, I feel like a PUPPY again! Woo-hoo! Mom felt my lymph glands and exclaimed, "Hey, I don't feel ANYTHING—not even those little ones that sort of felt like little peas anymore!" Mom was really sad the other day when she cut off the bandage on my left arm because the doctor had SHAVED my arm (I sort of have that Chinese Crested look)—she said, "Uh oh, Stella is going to have a cow when she sees this!" but daddy said, "It will grow back" and I don't care cuz my hair is long enough anyway and it is covered up.

We went to Roger's Gardens (this ritzy nursery in Corona del Mar) and I got to go (of course! I LOVE nurseries—lots of cool things to smell) and I got to ride along in the bottom of the cart—my usual place—and no one even saw my shaved arm. Lots of people came up and said, "OMG, look at that dog! She's a queen!" hehehe It was funny. See? No one saw my shaved arm (I'm not THAT vain, after all…).

Anyway, I can't believe how good I feel. I am glad mommy decided to let me get that chemo stuff. Despite the blood tests and all that poking with the needles and all…

Happy Santa Day!

Merry Christmas to everyone! I hope everyone has a wonderful day. I am going to go visit some relatives this afternoon. Last night I went to visit the boys (Lukas & Jordan) and ate lots of broccoli with them. mmmm

This afternoon I went to another family member's house and they have…ta-da…French Bulldogs! Woo-hoo! New friends to make—one was a boy named Jack and one was a girl named Ginger. Jack is a big boy and Ginger is a more delicate young lady. They were very sweet to me. The funny thing is they both drank out of MY demitasse cup of water the whole time…hehehe! Mommy had to keep refilling it. I shared my favourite Salmon Liv-a-Littles with them and they liked 'em a lot.

I also got to play with Hailey Kay. She's a sweet little girl who LOVED my kisses (check out the picture of me and Hailey Kay!). Nicholas was sort of scared of me but he did keep trying to come closer to me and Hailey…hehehe

I had a good time but, boy, I am soooo tired! So, toodle-ooo…I'm off to night-night early.

It's almost Christmas! I've been extra good, have you?

I've been a good girl, yes I have. Santa should be bringing me good things, right? I didn't complain at all when the doctor shaved part of my chest so that she could do an ultrasound on my heart (mommy didn't want to even LOOK at the shaved spot but Stella, my groomer had a total cow!). I figure I cannot be vain about this so Santa should give me brownie points, right? Maybe Stella is going to get a piece of coal…I hope not, she gave me extra kisses after seeing the spot. I'll make sure I leave Santa an extra cookie, just in case…

My friend Tuesday wrote about me in her diary and I have lots of new friends because of that entry. What a sweetheart that Tuesday is! Santa is probably going to bring her lots of extra goodies, too. I'm sure of it!

I did get into a bit of trouble today, though. I went in for my chemo and at the end, I played in the water bowl. Oops! You see, I don't get to drink water in a BOWL. I have a MUG and a DEMITASSE cup because my hair gets wet and nasty looking (heaven-forbid!) so I am not allowed to have a bowl. WELL, it was such a nice big bowl that I decided to, well, do a bit of wading…hehehe! When mommy saw me she almost fell over. She said, "You see, she was probably swimming in that bowl, wasn't she?" Yep, that's right! Drinking? I don't think so! Oh well. A gal gets that chance only once!

It's vacation, vacation…

Woo-hoo! Vacation time is here! Yesterday I went to my FAVOURITE breakfast place, the Park Bench Café and had a turkey patty…mmmmm! THEN, I found out the most saddest news ever…Mike, the owner, is shutting down for Christmas! ARGH! I was soooo looking forward to going every single day for breakfast (mommy promised she'd take me!) and now? hmph I can't go until he re-opens on the 27th, AFTER Christmas. Sheesh. What's a diva dog to do?

We walked along the park and it was fun. We also got to go and visit Patti at the nursery and I love to see her cuz she's a sweetie-pie. She got all sad when mom told her about my cancer but hey, I'm feeling good so it isn't bad at all plus my glands are all down and all so I think things are looking better, right? You have to think positively. :)

I went to get my teeth cleaned. Now they are all pearly-white. Woo-hoo! Hmm, now if mom can just find that Santa hat I can have my picture put up for the Holiday Picture parade…hehehe!